Restarting
by found.my.bella
Summary: Bella moves back to Forks to live with her parents. She has never met any of the Cullens. In the same universe, but a different storyline. All human. Enjoy!
1. Coming Home

Coming Home

**A/N : So, this isn't my first fanfic. Ha. That'll throw you off. The first chapter is a touch depressing, but the rest will be a lot better, really! Don't 'forget' to review! **

Looking up at the greyness of the sky, I sighed. Why had I come to visit my parents in Forks? I would be moving to Seattle soon enough. Why hadn't I put off my visit a while longer, or wait until after I was settled in? Sure, my parents lived here, but so did clouds. And Emmett wasn't here. Emmett, my adorable body-builder of an adopted brother. He was a total idiot, but he had a heart of gold and wouldn't hurt anyone. Unless they were annoying me. I smirked grimly, remembering when Emmett had attacked my last boyfriend. As memories of that horrific relationship filled my mind, I lost my sense of humor and tried in vain to fight them…

"_Come on, Bells, I've waited long enough!" whined Jacob. He sat beside me on the couch in the living room. _

"_No, Jake. I'm not ready yet," I replied. When would he get the point that I just didn't want to? Sometimes he was really annoying._

"_Will you ever be?" he asked, as always._

"_No, probably not," I joked easily. But he didn't appreciate my humor. His face darkened, and I could see determination and anger in his eyes._

"_Jake? Are you okay?" I asked. He was scaring me. _

"_I've made up my mind, Bella. I'm not waiting any longer." And with that, he leaned in and ripped my shirt off. He was so _strong.

"_Jake? Jake, what are you doing? Get off me!" I screamed desperately as he pushed me down onto the couch, unbuttoning my pants. What the hell did he think he was doing? Was he trying to…to rape me? I was overcome by a wave of fury. I reached out and grabbed the phone, hitting him hard on the head. Stunned, he raised his hands to the spot where I had hit him. I took advantage of the situation and ran to the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I pressed the speed dial button, frantic. _

"_Hello?" asked a deep voice._

"_Emmett! Help me! Jake's gone crazy!" I yelled, half-crying. _

"_I'm there. Get out of there, get safe, then call 911. I'm coming." He hung up just as something hard crashed into the door. I screamed._

"_I'll get you eventualy, Bella, I swear!" yelled Jacob. His voice had a rough edge to it that I'd never heard before. _

_I looked around wildly for an escape. There was a window. I rushed to it, even though I knew that I was on the 7th floor. I struggled with latch, trying to open it as I shook with fear. _

_That's when Jacob,who had been throwing himself against the door all this time, broke in. _

_He stood in the doorway, his long shaggy hair a mess. He was breathing heavily, his arms hanging at his sides. His eyes burning with purpose as he stepped toward me, he looked for all the world like an axe murderer. _

"_Jake, wait. Think about what you're doing," I pleaded weakly, knowing that it wouldn't stop him. _

"_I've thought it through, Bella. I'm done waiting." _

_But instead of coming towards me, he was launched backward._

_By Emmett. _

_My brother looked at me, rage, love and hate in his eyes. He winked at me, then closed the door as he yelled his fury. I heard sounds of a short, violent scuffle that ended with a large crack. _

_Then, there was silence. _

_Suddenly, the door burst open and I recognized, to my relief, the hulking shape of Emmett coming towardsme, arms wide. I only had time to take one step before he pulled me into a big bear hug, reassuring and warm. I stood crying into his chest, and he whispered comforts to me…_

As a car whizzed past me in the opposite direction, I was startled out of my bad memories.

"Crap," I muttered, noticing that my exit was less than a hundred meters away. I quickly went from the fast lane to the right lane, earning a few well-deserved honks from annoyed drivers.

As I shook the rest of the awful memories from my head, I cranked up the volume on the radio. 'Shadow of the Day' by Linkin Park was playing. How appropriate.

From memory, I made my way to my parents' house, forcing myself to be happy.

By the time I pulled into their driveway, I had nearly prepared myself for them. As I turned off the car, I readied myself for my parents, thinking happy thoughts and humming cheerful songs. I plastered a smile on my face and walked up to the door. I rang the doorbell, and as soon as the first note chimed, Renee was tearing open the front door, tears of joy in her eyes.

"Bella!" she exclaimed. "I'm so glad you could visit us before you moved to Seattle! I didn't think you would!" She let me go and peered around me, searching for Emmett, probably.

"Where's your brother?" she asked. Of course.

"Mom, I already told you that Emmett probably wouldn't be coming," I explained once again.

"Yes, I know he had some business thing to go to, but can't he get more flexible hours?"

"You can't get flexible interview appointments, Mom."

She looked at me with understanding, a look of pity on her face.

"Yes, I know. What has the world come to?" she muttered.

As I finally moved past her into the house, I looked around for Charlie.

"Where's Dad?" I asked.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you, dear. He went fishing today with Harry. You remember Harry Clearwater?"

I nodded. I had often visited him in La Push. I didn't go there anymore. It gave me awful feelings, and I made everything awkward.

"Anyway," blabbed Renee, "he won't be back for at least an hour. So we can have a mini-girls night! I've got nailpolish and colorful makeup and I even got a spa kit!" She positively beamed at the thought of the torture.

"Aw, really? That's so thoughtful, Mom, but I'm really tired from the drive and all that," I replied, hiding my alarm. No way was I going to accept a 'mini-girls night'!

As Renee's face fell, I felt guilty, and tried to redeem myself.

"How about … A quick coat of nailpolish as we talk, okay?" It pained me to say it, but her expression was worth it.

"That sounds great, honey! Let's get you moved in first, though."

After gently refusing her help, I got my one suitcase from the trunk of my car and brought it up to my childhood room. Then, accepting my fate, I trudged back downstairs, subconciously dragging my feet.

When Renee saw me, a look of pity crossed her face.

"Aw, sweetie, I'm really sorry, but I think you should go to bed. You look exhausted. You've got these big dark circles under your eyes."

Gee, thanks Mom. Just what I wanted to hear. But at least it got me out of girly-girl torture.

"Yeah, I think I am too tired. I'll see you in the morning. Say hi to Dad for me, okay?" I said, yawning for effect.

Looking at me with motherly love, Renee simply nodded.

I walked up to my room and collapsed gratefully onto my bed. Curling up under the covers, I was surprised at how tired I actually was. And at how comfy my bed was.

"Maybe this won't be so bad after all," I murmured, half-asleep already.

**A/N : So, that's the first chapter. Please review and tell me what you think!! I've got the next chapter planned out, it'll be a lot more exciting, I promise!!**


	2. Making Friends

Making Friends

**A/N : Back by popularish demand, a chapter! Joy! Hope you all review! **

I woke up the next morning aroudn 10 am, feeling fully rested and ready to go. Actually, I felt like running. Or, walking. Yeah, walking definitely sounded better than running. But what sounded better than either of them was a shower.

I went with my instinct.

I had a nice, long, hot shower. It was very refreshing, and I was completely awake by the time I walked downstairs at 11:30. I went straight to the kitchen, having heard my tummy rumble quite a few times. To my surprise, I found someone else in the kitchen.

"Dad!" I exclaimed.

Startled, he looked up from the newspaper he was reading.

"Bells!" he cried, just as happy to see me. He stood up and I ran over to him, overjoyed at the sight of him.

He squeezed me tightly for a moment, then let me go, holding me at arms' length.

"It's so great to see you again, hon!" he said, beaming.

"I'm happy to see you, too, Dad!" I replied truthfully. "But aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"I managed to get the morning off. I'm not much of a talker, and neither are you, so I figured that we would get through all our catching up quickly." He glanced at the clock. "I thought you would have woken up earlier, tthough."

I smiled apologetically.

"Sorry about that. Did I ruin the structure of your day?" I teased. It was an old joke between us. Renee could get extremelty obsessive with her plans, and if someone showed up a minute late she would be a mess. Thankfully, I didn't turn out like that. I took after my father.

"As a matter of fact, you almost did. If you'd woken up any later, you would have," he joked back. He grinned at me, then gave me another quick hug. "I'll see you tonight, okay?"

"I look forward to it."

"Oh, and could you put my dishes away please? Thanks, Bells!" he said quickly, rushing off to work. I chuckled. My father, king of escaping housework. He never cooked, cleaned, washed or helped out around the house. Fortunately, my mother liked it that way.

Moving out into the living room with a piece of toast, I found Renee sitting in a chair sipping coffee. She looked up at me as I came in, and I saw the hint of a plan in her eye.

"Good morning, Mom," I said warily.

"Hi sweetie. Did you find the jam for your toast?" she asked, seeming casual.

The plan reveals itself.

"No, I didn't, actually. I settled on just peanutbutter.

The great actress feigned surprise as best she could.

"Oh, are we all out? I didn't even realize!"

I sighed to myself.

"We can't have that, can we? I'll have to go pick some up, I guess," I said, going along with her supposedly-foolproof plan.

"Oh, would you, Bella? There's a short list on top of the microwave of stuff we need, so if you're going…"

My parents were quite a pair. My father avoided housework as though it were the plague, while my mother never learned the concept of the subtle message. And I wondered why I was so strange…

"Sure, Mom. I'll go to the store right now."

"Thanks, Bella!" she sang. As Ieft the room, I glanced back to see her smiling proudly as she looked out the window. If this made her feel superior, I wasn't going to take that away from her.

I grabbed a light sweater, brushed my teeth quickly, and drove off to the grocery store. As I walked into the store, I glanced at the list. Whoever wrote it had horrible handwriting. I suspected Charlie. Deciding to deal with the puzzle later, I searched for what I knew we needed. Jam.

I walked down one of the aisles, looking at the products. Ketchup…fruit…dried fruit… canned fruit… canned vegetables… Nutella… incredibly hot guy…oh! Jam!

Whoops. Rewind.

!maJ!ho …yug toh ylbidercni … Stop. Playback.

Incredibly hot guy.

He stood in the next aisle over, and I could see him through a space where a product had been sold out. Dried prunes.Ugh.

He was so much better than dried prunes.

His tousled brownish-red hair complimented his slightly pale skin perfectly. He was wearing a burgundy v-neck with a white dress shirt underneath. The collar and arms stuck out at the neck and sleeves of his sweater, and his dark jeans made the whole thing look nicely casual. As I inspected his outfit, my gaze wandered to his face. I nearly fainted.

His features were very masculine, and he had an obviously strong jaw. His lips were a perfect shade of pale pink, and they looked very kissable. His nose led me up to his eyes, which were a brilliant green. I was hypnotized by them. They were bright, intelligent, knowing, beatuiful and…startled?

"Excuse me?" he asked, looking straight at me. I jumped back at the sound of his voice, wonderful sound though it was. I hit a display behind me, and I heard footsteps coming around the aisle. Oh, crap. He was coming. I quickly ran the other way, which was hard to do with a heavy basket. I grabbed some blueberry jam as I passed it, remembering at the last second that it was Renee's favourite. Then I dashed to one of the open cashiers and put my basket down, breathless. I looked for the guy, but I didn't see him anywhere. Relaxing, I straightened.

"Hi!" came a perky voice.

I looked at the cashier.

"My name is Alice," she said in a high-pitched voice, pointing at her name tag, "and I'll be your cashier for today. And if you don't mind me saying, you look a little bit tired. Training for a marathon?" she inquired.

I stared at her. She was beautiful, in a dollish sort of way. She had short, blond spiky hair that fit her small face perfectly. Her petite figure managed to make her uniform look good, and she sent of waves of friendliness that were almost visible.

"Uh, no. I'm running from this guy who caught me staring at him." It wouldn't hurt to tell her. It wasn't as though I'd ever see her again.

"Ooh, a hottie! Describe him to me. Maybe I know him! Don't worry, you saw him first so I won't make a move. I swear," she promised, flinging her hand up to her heart. I heard a crack from the carton of eggs she was holding, but let it slide.

"Well, he's wearing a burgundy v-neck with a white button-down shirt underneath, with these great dark jeans. And his hair has that sort of windblown look, a little messy but awesome. And it's an odd shade of brown-red, but not very bright…"

"He likes to call it bronze," she interrupted me. "And let me guess," she cleared her throat, then adopted a high-pitched voice that was meant to be mocking :

"Oh my God, he has these beautiful green eyes that just pull you and really pale skin and a great jaw and he is just so totally hot!" She finished. She managed to force excitement into her voice even though she kept a straight face.

"Oh, he's a ladies' man? Great. Maybe he won't remember me…" I mumbled, half-relieved and half-…why was I disappointed?

"Oh, I'm pretty sure he remembers you," said Alice with a smirk.

"Why…" I was just about to ask her why she would say that when I was, once again, rudely interrupted.

"Excuse me?" he asked for the second time that day. Oh, crap. I considered running, but I needed the groceries. I thought of fainting, to avoid talking to him. But instead I went with my first instinct.

I whirled around in a panic to see _him_. God, he looked so good. His eyes were unreadable. Had I angered him?

"Uh, hi" I stammered. But I couldn't say any more than that. I looked to Alice for help, and I noticed that he did too.

Alice sighed.

"Am I destined to play matchmaker? Girl-with-no-nametag, meet Edward Cullen, my brother."

Her brother? That's why she heard this type of thing so often.

"It's Bella," I mumbled, embarrassed at her words.

Then he spoke again.

"Hi, Bella. I'm Edward. Pleased to meet you," he said easily, extending a hand.

I weakly shook his hand, and I actually nearly fainted when I touched him.

Alice snorted.

"Oh, don't give me this crap. You both know you want to kiss each other right now. Go ahead, I'll cover the potato's eyes." She hid the potato behind her back.

"Alice!" we both cried at the same time. I turned to look at Edward again. He was blushing almost as much as I was!

"For a cashier, you're pretty rude," I added, just as he said : "For a pixie, you're pretty rude." I stared at him, startled. Had he read my mind? That was the term I was thinking of, too!

She glared at us both, but answered me first.

"For your information, this is my last day on the job. I'm moving to Seattle with some girl who's last name is Swan." As I stood, stunned, she turned on her brother.

"Oh sweet and loving brother of mine, you watch out! I am a pixie only in your eyes, because you are so strong and handsome and beatiful and tall and GAG ME WITH A SPOON!" she finished explosively. A few other cashiers and customers had looked over by now. She waved brightly.

"Just practicing for a play!" she called out. Even so, a few shoppers rushed out of the store, dragging their amused children by the hands.

I almost burst out laughing. Almost. But Edward broke the silence.

"Emmett thought you were abnormally small, too," he said quietly. A look of pain crossed his face.

Alice stayed silent.

I decided it was my turn to talk.

"Um, sorry to ruin this tender moment, but I know an Emmett and a Cullen." They looked up at me, confused and startled.

"I'm sharing an apartment with a Cullen. I'm guessing that's you, Alice," I said, half-asking. She nodded happily.

I turned to Edward.

"Emmett McCarty? He's my adopted brother." Edward simply nodded as a million emotions crossed his face. Happiness, confusion, gratefulness, joy, love, pain. He looked up at me with slightly watery eyes.

"Thank you, Bella. Do you know where I could reach him?" I thought for a moment, then quickly wrote down 2 numbers on a page of note paper. I tore it out of the pad and handed it to him.

"The first is his home number. He's living in Olympia. The second is my number. Just in case," I added. He grinned, pocketing the vital paper.

"I'm sure I'll be using both very soon. But seeing as you're here, I might as well ask you now. There's this great little Italian restaurant that I think you'll love. I'd love to take you there. A small exchange for all the joy you've brought me." He was smiling a very seductive smile.

"Name the time, I'm there," I replied confidently.

"I'll pick you up at 9 sharp."

"Nine? Isn't that a little late for dinner? I mean, won't the restaurant be closed?"

He grinned a perfectly crooked grin, looking very smug.

"Nine," he repeated. Then he gave me a quick wink and left the store.

As soon as he was gone, I turned to Alice. She was staring at me open-mouthed.

"What?" I asked defensively.

It took her a second to reply. She searched for words, then finally answered me.

"I've never seen him so… well, the only word I can think of is… in love."

I stared at her. Had she said love? How was that possible? I asked her.

It was her turn to be defensive.

"It was the first word that popped into my mind that fit, okay!" She pointed at her computer screen. "Your total comes to $89.47." She held out her hand expectantly.

I paid, then looked at her anxiously.

"Alice, do you really think that he… likes me?"

"Yes. I do think that he… likes you," she replied seriously.

I nodded numbly, then picked up my bags and brought them back out to my car. As I approached it, I noticed a small pink paper stuck under the winshield wiper. I rushed over, confused. This was a parking lot. You can't get tickets in a parking lot, can you? As I picked up, I noticed that it didn't look like an official paper. I had received a few in the past, and I was sure I would be able to tell the difference.

Instead, the page had a few words written in a beautiful script on it :

_Please don't get arrested for stalking someone between now and Saturday. _

_-Edward _(**A/N : I wrote this in Edwardian Script, even though I know it won't show up here!) **

I laughed out loud, causing a few people to look over at me strangely. They probably thought I was laughing at a parking ticket.

But suprisingly, I didn't care. I was too happy and excited and anxious and bewildered and surprised and confused and nervous and scared, all at the same time.

As I loaded the groceries into the trunk, I couldn't stop thinking about Edward. I didn't know if that was normal, because I had only had one other major crush in my life : Jacob.

That hadn't turned out too well.

I was gripped with a sudden fear. Would Edward be like that? Sure, he seemed nice now. But so had Jake.

Was Edward just going to hurt me? Maybe it was a bad idea to get involved…

**A/N : So, what do you all think? As good as the first chapter or… should I stop ********? Let me know! Thanks in advance! Review review review!**


	3. Alice Time

Alice Time

**A/N: Because a few people are confused, I'll explain the situation: Emmett and Edward were best friends when they were younger, until**** Emmett and Bella moved when they were about 12 (Emmett) and 10 (Bella). So now that Edward has rediscovered his childhood friend, he is overjoyed. Plus, he got a little extra! Anyway, here's the new chapter. **

I thought about the Edward situation for a long time after I had gotten home. I re-read his note at least a dozen times, and replayed our conversation in my head. I searched for any signs of mean-ness, any hints of abusiveness. But even as I scrutinized his face and eyes, I couldn't find anything suspicious. Maybe he was fine.

As I considered my situation, I decided that if I was indeed going to be sharing a flat with Alice, then I better not annoy and alienate her brother. And, out of politeness, I would go out with Edward… at nine o'clock. What an odd time to go out for dinner. As I wondered why he would ask me to go out that late, the doorbell rang. As I glanced at the clock, I noticed it was 5 to nine.

I mentally freaked out.

Edward hadn't said what day he was picking me up… I hadn't expected tonight but it was possible. I looked around frantically for a comb or a nice shirt or something, but I was at a loss. Nothing in sight. I sighed. I guess this was it.

I walked to the door and opened it slowly, expecting to see a look of disgust cross his perfect face.

But to my surprise, Edward wasn't at the door… Alice was!

"Alice?" I asked, dumbfounded. What was she doing here?

"Hey Bella!" she greeted me cheerfully. "I myspaced you and found you in a couple of minutes. I found out where you lived and decided to visit. Is that okay?" she asked.

I just nodded, stepping aside to let her in.

"You… myspaced me? How?"

She grinned at me.

"Apparently Edward wasn't the only person who noticed you. I just checked out some of my guy friends' spaces and BOOM! Tons of info and pics! And I said people noticed you," she added, "because guys aren't the only gender involved."

I gasped in horror, catching her meaning.

"You mean… there are pictures of me… portrayed as a lesbian?" Unbelievable, but Alice nodded. I just gaped at her.

"Actually, quite a lot of people got pictures of you. I'm surprised. And I don't mean to scare you, Bella," she said, her voice lowering, "but someone got a picture of you unlocking your front door."

I rushed to close said door, paranoid. Who were these people? And what did they want?

Alice seemed unbothered.

"You'll be fine. I just popped by to help and organize."

I looked at her suspiciously.

"Help?" I asked.

"Yep. With your outfit for the date, your moving boxes for the apartment and anything else that needs a little of what Edward calls pixie dust!" she smiled brightly.

I sighed.

"Okay, Tink. Come on upstairs to my room," I said, leading her there.

She gasped when saw it, and immediately ran to my suitcase, sorting through it quickly, but not wrinkling any item in it. I was impressed.

She tsked her displeasure at my wardrobe, then looked up hopefully.

"There's more somewhere, right? Drawers, a walk-in closet?" I shook my head, and she gave me a pitying look before brightening.

"I guess we'll have to schedule a shopping trip the, Bella." As I opened my mouth to protest, she cut me off. "You're not living with me dressed in stuff like this. Alice Cullen is worth more than this. And so is Edward, though I hate to admit it. What were you planning on wearing tomorrow night?" she inquired.

I blushed.

"I haven't even thought about it yet."

She tsked again.

"Let me tell you, Bella, I've already thought about it. Sit down, and I'll tell you how this is going to go down." She sat down on my bed and patted a space beside her. I sat down warily.

"Shoot," I allowed.

That was all it took. Alice gushed about an outfit she had seen that would look stunning on me, told me what kind of nailpolish I should wear, how I was going to style my hair and what kind of makeup she would apply. I listened, and her happy voice was soothing, peaceful, almost. We talked late into the night, and Alice had the time to be introduced to both my parents, who seemed a little overwhelmed but happy.

Alice left around eleven and came back the next morning at 10 with the outfit she had picked out.

As I lifted it out of its package, I had to admit that it was very pretty. The question was, though, would it look as good on me?

Alice answered my question quickly by forcing me to try it on. As I walked out of the bathroom where I had changed, I gasped as I caught sight of my reflection in the full-length mirror Alice had brought over.

I was wearing a midnight blue halter-type dress with straps that crossed just below my neck to be tied up in a knot at the back. It stopped just above my knees and complimented my curves perfectly. Alice had also bought me a small clutch that matched and completed the outfit. My black shoes had little dark blue bows on them and open toes. They were high enough to be stylish, but low enough to be able to walk in without breaking an ankle. They were… perfect.

I looked up at Alice in gratitude.

"Thank you, Alice. I love all this, and I'm so grateful that you got me these and that you went through all this trouble for me."

"Not a problem compared to what comes next!" she exclaimed.

I swear I felt the color leave my face.

She made me take off the dress so that I wouldn't ruin it and proceeded to paint my nails and toenails, which she said were in wonderful condition. Then she sat me down in a chair in front of the mirror she had supplied and started playing with my hair. Around 1:30, I threatened that I would pass out if I didn't eat, and she grudgingly agreed to let me have a snack. Keep in mind, I hadn't eaten anything all day. After a 15 minute break, she resumed the mini-makeover and I patiently sat, oohing and ahing at what I hoped were the right times. Other then that, we chatted lightly and Alice commented on various parts of myself, my room and my wardrobe. She explained to me her plans for the apartment's décor that she had in mind, and I was actually pretty excited about that. All in all, it was a fun, girly day.

But suddenly, all too soon, it was 8:00. Time to put on the dress again. I prepared myself for my date as Alice rambled on with warnings about not biting my nails (not that I do) or scratching them. She scolded me when I tried to push some hair out of my face, telling me that I had ruined the style. As I applied a final layer of lip gloss (Alice had warned me that wearing lipstick on a first date made you look like you were serious with the guy, and I definitely didn't want to look like that on a first date), I glanced at myself in the mirror and smiled.

Alice promptly stepped in front of me, pointing an accusing finger at me.

"Becoming a little self-obsessed, are we?" I couldn't see her face, because I was too busy admiring myself, but I could hear the smile in her voice. I glanced at the clock. 8:45.

My smile disappeared as I realized that Edward would be here in 15 minutes. Catching sight of my expression, Alice smiled encouragingly.

"Don't worry, Bells. It'll be fine, and you'll both have fun."

"Thanks, Als." Two days only, we had known each other, and already we were on a nickname basis. Funny.

I checked the time again. 8:50. Five minutes had gone by so fast…

Alice jumped up, looking guilty.

"I shouldn't be here, should I? It's your date, and afterwards I'll be home alone with your parents so…" I held up a hand.

"It's fine, Alice. Stay. I know you want to see his expression when he opens the door."

She grinned, then caught sight of the clock.

"Five minutes. Go wait downstairs. I'll stay out of sight around the corner of the kitchen, okay?" I nodded and followed her to the living room, where I sat down uncomfortably.

I waited anxiously, imagining everything that could go wrong. I could spill something on him, lapse into awkward silence, rip my dress, ruin his clothes…

Ding…

Mess up my hair, smudge my makeup, break my heels…

Dong.

Crap.

He was here.

**A/N: Ha! You'll have to wait a little bit longer! I want 10 reviews, minimum! Please! I've been nice, haven't I? I deserve it!**** I know it was sort of a short chapter, but I figured I better update. Was I right?**


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